These guys are our rough equivalent to the USN Seals except ours are trained to do a wider range of tasks.

"Naval Station Pearl Harbor, Hawaii ­ Able Seaman Adam Hubbard, attached to Australian Clearance Diving Team One, based out of Sydney, participates in a simulated Vehicle Board Search and Seizure (VBSS). The team fast roped out of a SH-60 from HS-2, onto the USS Valley Forge, an Inact ship, during the training. The Australian Clearance Diving Team One is deployed to Hawaii in support of Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC). U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jennifer A. Villalovos." Link

I'll try to find some information on the carriers we're building. Last I checked they were still deciding whether to go with the super carrier or the two smaller battle-carriers. Personally I think the battle-carriers are alot better, but they don't have as much "cringe-factor".

I'll try to find some information on the carriers we're building. Last I checked they were still deciding whether to go with the super carrier or the two smaller battle-carriers. Personally I think the battle-carriers are alot better, but they don't have as much "cringe-factor".

These subs can go into silent mode by running on a new type of batteries.

They're one of the biggest most powerful conventional subs out there.

They were designed during the cold war. One capability is to be able to sneak all the way up to the Sea of Japan & lay there on the sea bed to wait for Soviet ships.

Collins sub shines in US war game

October 13 2002By Brendan NicholsonPolitical Correspondent

One of Australia's Collins class submarines has hunted down and "killed" a state-of-the-art United States nuclear submarine in a series of mock attacks during an underwater warfare exercise off Hawaii.

Officers in the exercise told The Sunday Age HMAS Sheean had held its own during two rigorous weeks of combat trials with the Los Angeles class attack sub, USS Olympia. The subs had swapped roles as hunter and prey and scored roughly equal numbers of hits.

The role of seeking and destroying an enemy submarine is one of the most difficult faced by Australia's six new Collins class submarines. The success off Hawaii in August has boosted morale dramatically among submarine crews who have had to endure years of hearing their boats condemned as noisy and vulnerable.

A 1999 report by the then CSIRO chief, Malcolm McIntosh, and former BHP managing director John Prescott said the Collins' combat system should be junked, the vessels were noisy and vulnerable to attack, their engines broke down regularly, a badly shaped hull and fin made too much disturbance when they moved at speed under water, the view from the periscope was blurry, the communications system outdated and the propellers were likely to crack.

Commander Steve Davies, chief-of-staff in the navy's submarine force, said that during the past three years those problems had been fixed to the point where the submarines were able to match the best of the US Navy's giant underwater fleet.

During its mock attacks on the Olympia and on two US destroyers, the Sheean fired 28 torpedoes. Commander Davies said "a respectable percentage" of shots Sheean fired at Olympia were hits that would have destroyed the powerful US vessel.

Commodore Davies, Australia's most experienced Collins commander, said the two vessels were very evenly matched. The submarines also practised landing special forces.

The exercises provided a crucial test for the Australian submarine, which has been as much criticised at home as it has been feted abroad.

The Olympia, 110 metres long and 12 metres across the beam, is twice the displacement of the Sheean, at 80 metres by eight metres. The Olympia carries up to 120 crew; the Sheean 45. Many of the Americans are engineers caring for their reactor.

The Collins is powered by diesel and electric motors and its roles include undersea warfare - finding and destroying other submarines - destroying enemy warships and merchant ships, surveillance and intelligence collection, support for special forces and covert transport.

Commander Davies said the US sub's size was not an advantage: "It just means you make more noise when you go faster."

He said cooperation with the US submarine force had increased significantly recently. "That has come about because they're interested in the Collins class and in our submarine force generally."

While the Americans run the world's most powerful submarine arm, they acknowledge that changes in international conditions in the past decade and new priorities have left them with tactics to learn from the small Australian submarine arm.

Commander Davies said Australian submariners were used to operating in shallow water. "That's one of the things the Americans are looking towards us for experience in.

"Ten years ago their submarine force was chasing Russian submarines around the deep ocean. Now, as with all submarine forces, it's more focused on closer inshore operations, intelligence collection or working with special forces. They're looking to us as a submarine force which has a long experience in that sort of thing."

The six Collins' combat systems are to be upgraded further and they will get more modern torpedoes. Those the Sheean used in its clashes with the Olympia were developed in the 1970s; the Americans used a far more sophisticated generation.

While smaller than the US nuclear boats, the Collins is one of the world's biggest conventional submarines. It was designed to cover long distances and the Sheean easily reached Hawaii without refuelling.

and the year after...

Collins subs star in naval exercises

By Brendan NicholsonSeptember 24, 2003

Three of Australia's Collins class submarines "destroyed" two US Navy nuclear submarines and an aircraft carrier in separate exercises off the Australian coast.

The commander of the navy's submarine group, Commodore Mike Deeks, said the submarines performed spectacularly well. In each exercise, the Collins subs, once dismissed as duds, matched state-of-the-art adversaries.

On a training course for submarine commanders from the Australian and US navies, HMAS Waller was competing with a US Los Angeles class, fast-attack submarine in three weeks of intensive simulated combat off the WA coast.

"At the end of the course, the Americans were wide-eyed," Commodore Deeks said. "They realised that another navy knows how to operate submarines and that the way the US Navy does it is a good way but not the only way. They went away very impressed."

Commodore Deeks said the most difficult task a submarine faced was to destroy an enemy sub and the exercises demonstrated that the Collins was a match for a modern nuclear submarine.

The "Sea Sprite" helicopters were purchased from the US for the Australian Navy. The government has a habit of buying inferior US equipment when there's perfectly good US or European equipment on offer.

Let me quote: "They don't fly in bad weather, they don't fly at night and they don't fly over water!"

they wanted to save money, so instead of paying the large upfront on a already advanced lynx derivative they bought refurbished 'super' sea sprites. With the initial savings they then attempted to customise it with very advance electronics. The system has never been built before and with the aussies wanting so many things changed instead of the 'off the shelf' type purchase this was like developing a new system.

The result was a helicopter that is yet to be operational and all the development costs and delays have made it at least as expensive as buying a bloody new one. They are meant to be for our ANZACS

i agree they were a mistake but with so much spent already its almost as silly to dump it right now. Me thinks we wont be so easily convinced on any proposal that zero times an old design for an upgrade.

My reading of the government talk about this particular case, is that future contracts will be negotiated differently. that is with clear clauses and big penalties on the delivery failures and delays. next time that is.

The RAN has six of these multi-purpose warships divided between its two main bases; Fleet Base East in Sydney and Fleet Base West in Perth.

These Adelaide Class frigates are based on the US Navy Oliver Hazard Perry design. The first four ships were built in the USA with subsequent modifications undertaken in Australia. The last two were constructed in Australia with all modifications incorporated. The last three ships are longer than the Oliver Perry class.

Each FFG ship is a long-range escort ship with roles including air defence, anti-submarine warfare, surveillance, interdiction and reconnaissance. The ship is capable of contering simultaneous threats from the air, surface and sub-surface.

The Mk 92 Mod 12 Fire Control System is being improved, providing greater lethality against very small sea-skimming missiles in even high clutter conditions.

New hull mounted sonars and the addition of passive towed array and helicopter sonobuoys serving a multi-layered approach to the detection and classification of torpedoes.

A compact on-board training system, integrated with the existing combat system will be provided, enabling continuation training both in port and at sea to maintain a higher level of FFG operational capability.

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